Henry f



(No Model.)

H. P. GRAY.

HAT AND GOAT RACK.

No. 335,189. Patented Feb. 2, 1886.

Ill/VE/VYTOR forney Nv VEYERS, Photo-Liihugmpher, Walhington. D. c.

lltiirnn STATES HENRY F. GRAY, OF COLUMBUS, OHIO, ASSIGNOR, BY DIRECT AND MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO LEVI T. STRADER AND FREDERICK 1V. HAXVKES, BOTH OF SAME PLACE.

HAT AND COAT RACK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 335,189, dated February 2,1856.

Application filed June 9, 1885.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY F. GRAY, of Columbus, in the county of Franklin and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful 5 Improvements in Hat and Coat Racks; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to an improvement in hat and coat racks.

It is a very important feature in the manufacture of hat and coat racks of the folding or knockdown description that they should be capable of a compact adjustment for packing,

and that they should also be capable of a quick and simple adjustment for use.

The object of my present invention is to provide a hat and coat rack of the knockdown type which shall be capable of the most compact adjustment for shipment, which may be adjusted for use in a moments time by the most unskilled person, and which shall be capable, when adjusted, of sustaining any amount of weight within the limits of the strength of the material used without tending to loosen the hooks, but rather to set them more firmly in position.

A further object is to provide a neat, ineX- 3o pensive, and durable rack; and with these ends in view my invention consists in certain features of construction and combinations of parts, as will be hereinafter explained, and pointed out in the claim.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view of the rack adjusted for use, and Fig. 2 is a sectional view through one of the hooks and slots in the body of the rack.

A represents the body of the rack. It preferably consists of a wooden slat about an inch thick, three inches wide, andof any length desired. These dimensions with reference to the thickness and width are not, however, of any material consequence, excepting to show the proportions which I find itat present convenient and economical to use, as the body A may be made of any desired width and thickness and of other shapes than oblong. The body A is provided with a series of narrow Serial No. 168,129. (No model.)

transverse slots, a, in its upper edge, the (Us tance between the slots a being that desired for the hooks. The bottoms of the slots a are inclined to the faces of the body, as shown at a, Fig. 2, forming a wedge-shaped section, B, between the bottom of the slot and the face of 5 5 the body A, the edge of the wedge-shaped section being uppermost.

The hook consists of a longer upper prong,

G, and a shorter under prong, c, asis common. The portion 0, however, to which the prongs are secured, and which commonly forms a bearing against the face of the body and projects laterally in the form of flanges adapted to receive securing-screws, is in the present instance formed with very narrow flanges and provided with a rearwardly-extending tongue,

D, which terminates downwardly in a wedgeshaped prong, d. For the purpose of economizing metal and diminishing the weight the upper portion of the tongueD is provided with an oblong slot, at.

The rear edge of the tongue D is substantially straight and lies flush with the back, or between the back andfront faces of the body A. The wedge shaped space between the prong d and the bearing-face of the portion 0 is the same shape as and slightly narrower than the wedge-shaped section B, thereby causing the said prong and bearing-surface to tightly grip the front and rear edges of the section B when the hook is adjusted for use and weight applied.

The slots a extend entirely across the body to a depth sufficient to allow the tongue D to slide downwardly therein until the top of the 8 5 tongue and portion 0 rest flush, or nearly so, with the upper edge of the body.

The hook when adjusted for use presents a neat finished appearance, with no screw-heads visible, and affords a strong and durable sup- 0 port for hats and coats, the weight suspended from the hook serving to settle it more snugly into contact with the wedge-shaped section B. Its compactness when knocked down and packed for shipment is also one of its more important advantages, since the hooks may be removed from their positions in the slots without the use of a hammer or screw-driver,

and when bunched or laid in a line along the face of the body admit of the whole being Wrapped up closely, and without leaving any projecting parts, which will be liable to become broken or otherwise damaged in handling.

. To complete the rack ready for setting up immediatelyupon arrival, I provide it with a pair of eyebolts, E, in its upper edge, for the purpose of suspending it from a point or points above, and with one or more perforations, e, for the introduction of large screws or other fastening. If the eyebolts are not required, they may be readily removed and the perforations 0 used alone to fasten the body to the wall.

I am aware that it is old to secure a strip permanently to a wall, the said strip being provided with a series of vertical slots each terminating in an inclined bottom on the rear side of the strip for the reception of a wedgeshaped hook formed on a shelf-bracket, the lower end of said bracket being constructed to project below the strip and rest against the wall, and hence I make no claim to such construction.

In my device the rack-strip is provided with means for its removable attachment to the wall, and the removable hooks are wholly supported on the strip, and consequently do not come in contact with or deface the wall.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

As a new article of manufacture, aportable hat or coat rack consisting of arack-strip provided with means for its removable attachment to a wall or other support, and furnished with a series of vertical slots each terminating at its lower end in an inclined bottom on the rear side of the rack-strip, and removable hooks provided with side flanges the rear surfaces of which are supported throughout their entire length against the front side of the rackstrip, said hooks being each provided with a rearwardly-projecting shank constructed with a wedge-shaped slot in itslower end, substantially as set forth. 4

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses,

HENRY F. GRAY.

Witnesses:

A. E. OR EIGHTON, O. O. J oNEs. 

